NEWS
Tia Mowry Tears Up Over Not Being Able to See Family Members Amid Coronavirus Self-Quarantine (Exclusive)
March 25, 2020 PDT 10:11 PM
Tia Mowry-Hardrict is taking things one day at a time.
The Family Reunion star caught up with ET's Katie Krause via Zoom on Wednesday, where she got emotional talking about not being able to see her family amid quarantining due to coronavirus concerns.
"This is almost two weeks, so almost day 14 for me, and it's starting to get to me. The first week I was like, 'Yeah, you know this is great. I'm at home, this is awesome. I'm chilling.' But then, to be honest with you, yesterday was a little, even today, it's a little overwhelming for me," Mowry-Hardrict confessed. "I was meditating, because it's one way we've been staying sane in the house, and I just started to cry. I literally just started bawling and that had never happened to me before with meditation."
"I think it's because I was focusing on everyone else and not necessarily myself," she explained. "I was focusing on, how do I keep the kids busy, how I'm making dinner, how do I keep my husband busy, [daughter] Cairo, just kind of juggling everything, and [my son] Cree's schooling online. I wasn't able to really tap into my own feelings and what I was going through or feeling about this whole situation. So we're doing OK."
As for how she pulls herself out of those emotional moments, the actress credits her husband, Cory Hardrict, for keeping her positive amid her reading so many statistics that overwhelm her.
"It's good to be informed, but I think it's also important to focus on positivity with all of what's unfortunately going on," said Mowry-Hardrict, adding, "And just being here with my family has been very, very amazing."
While the former Sister, Sister star has been keeping busy with her two kids -- 8-year-old son Cree and 1-year-old daughter Cairo -- it's not being able to see her parents, Timothy Mowry and Darlene Mowry, twin sister Tamara, and brothers Tahj and Savior that breaks her heart.
"That, to be honest with you, has been the hardest part," she shared, getting visibly emotional. "Of course I get to see my family, my husband and my children, but not being able to see my dad, my brothers and my sister has been pretty hard because we're all very close."
To connect, they FaceTime regularly, show each other what they've made for dinner and texting constantly.
"It's crazy how we're getting excited about the simple things, like, 'Look what I made for dinner!' you know. I'm constantly checking up on [my brothers'] well being, like, 'How are you doing emotionally?' Especially with my dad and my mom because they're older," she explained, wiping away tears. "It's just so important to just stay inside, you know what I mean. It's safer at home and staying at home saves lives, but I'm able to talk to my mom and my dad on FaceTime. We talk almost everyday, my sister as well. We've been texting each other. She's doing well with her kids but I believe that's been the hardest, not being able to see your loved ones. But we're gonna get through this."
Like many, her upcoming projects have been put on hold for the time being. But fans and new audiences can still catch up on her current show, Family Reunion.
"The coolest reaction for me is seeing how this show has been able to translate to different countries," she said. "On my Instagram, a lot of people have been posting in their Stories the show with me speaking in German, me speaking in French, one I think was even from Brazil…It's just been so rewarding to see that."
"The show's very multicultural and multigenerational, so to see younger kids like it, older people liking it, moms like me liking it, and just seeing this range of people just enjoying the show has been really really rewarding," she added.
For now, she's focusing on the present, waiting for things to get better and focusing on the things that matter.
"I told my husband, I said, I feel like after this whole situation a lot of people are going to have a different perspective and a different view on things," Mowry-Hardrict expressed. "A lot of people are going to be changing their minds about whether it's their jobs or whatever doesn't make them happy. They're gonna be moving towards things that make them happy."
"I just think that people are gonna have a different perspective on things after all of this, and I think that's a good thing," she added.
For more on Mowry-Hardrict, including what new hobbies she's picked up, her go-to quarantine snacks, how she's embracing the no makeup look and more, watch the video above.
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